Out of Ten
by Lycii TyS
Summary: Beyond the dark streets of the unfamiliar Victorian London lies the dark truth about the shadow world. Hell is empty, all the demons are already walking this land of treachery and darkness. How much more can you feel before you start to break? Or maybe, all it takes is an angel to kiss it all better. Especially the one named Gabriel.
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I own nothing except for the plastic smoothie._

**Cecily Herondale stared with disinterest into the distance.** She wondered where Will, her brother, had gone. He seemed to leave her on her own in the most dreadful of situations although he always came back.

She stirred the frothing liquid place precariously in front of her with the curled straw before bringing herself to taste it. It tasted cool and seemingly, _plastic. _

Cecily fingered the pulsing ruby necklace nervously. It was getting dark and she knew that she couldn't leave the small bakery.

She didn't know enough of London to get back. Even if she did, she doubted that she would be able to work up enough courage to enter the dark city.

How she longed for the rolling green hills back in Wales, where the serene silence was as good a companion as any. Not this land of great dust and dirt, filled with the thousands.

She jolted rudely out of her reverie when a familiar sandy haired boy slipped into the adjoining seat opposite her. She scowled at him.

He broke into a smirk, his angular features making way. "Enjoying London much?"

She wisely forbade herself from answering, knowing that an angry retort was all that he was angling for. He was, at times, as infuriating as Will.

"Very," She snapped, glaring straight back at him. He had large piercing emerald green eyes, possibly like spring grass on a sunny day, if he weren't scowling at something or glaring daggers at Will.

His eyes crinkled up in amusement. Cecily had no idea whether he was baiting her or simply trying to be relatively pleasant. With Gabriel Lightwood, you could never tell.

"Well? Are you coming then? Or are you going to sit here all by your lonesome?" He held his arm out to her in a gesture of gentlemanliness.

She wasn't sure how Will knew of him in the first place, all she knew that the incident wasn't pleasant. He was more of a fiend to her brother than a friend.

She doubted that Gabriel was helping her back out of the goodness of his heart. If it were Jem, she would have obliged without a second thought. But, she didn't want to stay alone by herself no more.

"Alright," she replied, getting up and dusting her skirt although there was nothing. She ignored his outstretched hand as she turned to face him. "Lead the way."

Gabriel cocked his head to the side to look at her. "Very well," he stalked in front of her, not waiting for her to follow. He knew she would. He stopped at corner, waiting for her to catch up.

He was extremely tall, Cecily noted, although his height never bothered him in anything. He took long and graceful strides, like that of a predator stalking it prey.

"One out of ten," he told her. "You should hurry, we wouldn't to be caught in these streets after dark, would we?"

**Tell me if I should do this all the way until ten out of ten.**

**They are all shadowhunters, just to clear it up, although what section of the book they are placed in, I'm not quite sure.**

**I've always hoped that Gabriel would meet Cecily earlier than expected. **


	2. Chapter 2

**_I'm back! *Fanfare plays* Thanks for reading the first chapter, I'm going to go ahead and do this anyway, because I really want to and also possibly because I don't want to study for my upcoming physics test._**

**_Lets just pretend I'm completely free at the moment. _**

* * *

Cecily huffed indignantly as Gabriel strode on without heed.

She struggled to keep pace with the older shadowhunter as he glided along effortlessly.

She was getting annoyed at him and her dress was not helping matters.

She wasn't sure why she had wanted to wear it out at all. She felt his emerald eyes trained on her as they progressed deeper into the heart of London.

"Tell me something I don't know," Gabriel said flatly, fixing his gaze on her.

"What don't you know?" She shot back at him, mildly remembering that her mother would be horrified at her lack of manners.

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he put both his hands into his pockets.

"Well, for instance, there are quite a few things that I don't. For example, where Will had inherited that _aggravating _trait of his and perhaps how such that he would such a sister like you, with the lovely gaze where every eye doth dwells…" He trailed off, pushing the both of them back into silence.

"Shakespeare, I didn't you read books." Cecily tried to keep her voice steady. Had he just complemented her?

"I do, but that doesn't mean I enjoy them." His mouth curled into a disapproving scowl. Well, two minutes of decent conversation with Gabriel Lightwood, at least it was a start.

"Then why do you read, if you don't enjoy them?" Gabriel raised an eyebrow at her.

"A shadowhunter's upbringing. Any religious texts or historical of sort goes into our studies." He glanced down at her. "Your _brother _has told you much, hasn't he?"

"Yes, but that doesn't mean that he is intentionally keeping things from me." Cecily asserted.

She felt a strong need to defend anything that was related to her family. "Where are we going?"

"You ask a whole lot of questions, don't you?" Gabriel fell in step beside her.

He couldn't help but notice how much she looked like Will.

As pretty as he were handsome.

"For your sake, we're heading to Chiswick then cutting through the village to the Institute."

She tilted her head up at him, her eyes narrowed. "You don't trust me," he said plainly, stroking his waistcoat.

"Well, obviously not." She replied, waving her hand to the side as if she were fanning herself.

"I barely know you, in case you haven't noticed and the _tiny_ little fact that my brother hates your guts."

Gabriel resisted the urge to laugh. "The feeling is mutual," he replied, trying to keep his tone steady.

He was thoroughly enjoying his time next to William Herondale's sister as much as he hated to admit it.

When he had seen her sitting alone inside the tiny bakery, he had originally wanted to ignore her and head straight for home.

Something drew him to her, just like metal against metal.

He obviously failed to keep himself neutral because Cecily has stopped abruptly and was looking up at him curiously.

"Are you alright? You look cross-eyed." He rolled his eyes at her.

"I do not," he said indignantly as picked up his pace.

The urge to laugh was gone now, although he couldn't help but admire her wit. All the ladies he had met were all so plain, boring and dry.

He heard Cecily muttering under her breath behind him in Welsh.

He spotted William Herondale before any of them did, perched atop the mailbox, his eyes narrowed.

The mundanes strode past him without as much as a second glance thrown at him. Their gaze simply slid over him.

He took Cecily smoothly by the arm and led them swiftly into the nearest available alleyway.

Although Cecily had recoiled from his touch like it was poison, he had enjoyed how she seemed to fit in his hands.

"What was that for?" She hissed, glaring at him. Gabriel looked behind him, trying to catch a glimpse of Will.

Will was clearly intoxicated; his eyes were shining too brightly although he walked with a normal posture.

He didn't want Cecily to go, not yet. He turned back to her.

"Well?" Her hands were on her hips and he couldn't help notice how her eyes seem to glow as well.

"A change of plans. We will be taking another route. There is an… ah error in the road system." It came out more smoothly than he expected as he continued down the alleyway.

He was positively sure he'd been down here before. Well, at least once.

Gabriel was pleased to hear that Cecily had no objections as she grudgingly obliged and followed him.

"I haven't answered your earlier question," she said.

"And what would that be?" He stared into the alley before him.

"I rate you two out of ten for your navigation skills. Your sense of direction is _terrible."_

* * *

**Chapter two done!**

**Be prepared for some action!**

**Review my friends! I need some encouragement in my life.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here's another chapter. I probably won't be posting again until next week.**

* * *

Cecily shivered as they picked up their pace in the gloomy alley. The cool evening breeze blew against them, fluttering her shawl.

She pulled it tighter around her, all the while feeling his gaze on her although they had since lapsed into silence.

Her mind flashed back to the moment where Gabriel had took her arm like it was the most natural thing to do. She felt her cheeks grow hot.

She knew that the shadowhunters were less traditional when it came to things, but she somehow felt that his touch was _improper. _

She berated herself for the fact that she had enjoyed the feeling of his callused hands against hers. He was surprisingly gentle.

"Are you cold?" He asked, glancing at her. Cecily gritted her teeth. She wasn't going to show any weakness.

"I'm fine," she replied stiffly, both her hands clasped together. They lapsed back into silence.

It was as close to peace as you could find here in London, with the occasional rat scurrying in the darker corners.

There was a sharp crack, followed by a high pitched squeal.

Cecily could hear a clank, much like metal being rammed into the stone pavement. Gabriel tensed beside her.

He flicked his wrists as two wicked looking daggers slid out of his arm sheaths, hidden under his finery.

There was a silvery pattern etched onto the blade in a twining arc, like two crossed arms.

He raised an arm for her stop where she was, before darting around the corner, towards the source of the sound. Cecily stared aghast as he disappeared into the shadowed world.

She was disgusted. He had heard something and took off like a shot, leaving her stranded- once again. Cecily realized it was a common trait in all males.

If he were afraid that she would hurt herself or something, he could have at least left her with a weapon. At least she came prepared.

Her father had handed her their family knife as she set off to search for Will.

"For your sake and mine." He said as she turned to leave the gates.

She slid the knife from its sheath. It looked like it was made of bronze, the dull brown-ish color shimmering in a translucent way.

It had the same symbols she had seen etched on Gabriel's blades on itself. After Ella had died and Will gone, she had secretly taught herself how to use the Angel's weapons.

She remembered how her mother had walked in on her and screamed when she saw her holding the same knife.

She had ordered Cecily never to enter her father's study again, nor to touch one of the blades ever again. But, battle lust had grown on her. It was in her blood.

Cecily was much more careful after that, only sneaking to train herself and familiarize herself with her father's past when she thought no one was looking.

She tried to teach herself how to fight, familiarizing herself with blocks and lunges that seemed to stick to her.

It had been going on like that for nearly a year now, and she was growing more and more confident.

Cecily remembered the day when she was out on the hills, trying to practice with her newest favorite- her father's seraph blade.

She loved how the handle fit perfectly in her grip, like it was made for her. Her father had ambushed her then, caught her red handed.

Instead of reprimanding her, he had smiled gently instead. And taught her how to use it. It was the best day of her childhood.

"Remember Cecily, you have to name the blade. Always, remember to name it. The angels will protect you." She knew what her father meant. The weapon powered with the angelic name would, not the real angels.

"Gabriel," she whispered lightly, feeling the tip of blade blazing in white luminous light.

She would remember this life for her father, she would do just that.

**Ta-da! I don't mean it to be a really long and drag-ish story. So each chapter will be up to 500-700 words only. The plotline is rather simple actually.**

**And Gabriel is really a name for an angel. Just so you know.**

**Please tell me if I accidentally spell angel as 'angle'. I've seen many people doing that and it just puts me off.**

**Seriously its like 'half human and half angle'. **

**WOW, Shadowhunters are humans and partially mathematical instruments. The series should be called 'The Mathematical Instruments'.**

**Okay, I'm done ranting.**

**Review my minions! BA-NA-NA-S**


	4. Chapter 4

Gabriel wasn't sure why he had left Cecily where she was now. He wasn't sure why he wanted to leave her as well. Her presence was strangely comforting although he would never admit it.

The silence was getting suffocating for him and the scream happened to be a healthy distraction. He didn't understand why he felt as if a thousand ants were crawling up his skin.

He flicked his wrists as he strode towards the source of screams. Cecily could protect herself for a while. It was probably a mundane who had wandered off the main path.

They always seemed to bring trouble onto themselves, despite it being unintentional.

Gabriel had slowly developed a revulsion towards them over time, but it was not because of the fact that they were _beneath _him as Will perceived.

More of the fact that they seemed to purposefully land themselves into uncanny situations and needed saving. His senses were tingling overtime now.

He rounded the corner. There was couple flattened tightly against the other, leaning on the chalky brick walls. Gabriel stared disgusted while they were being unnecessarily explicit.

The male was slowly dragging his nails down the lady's arms, leaving great red streaks, blood pulsing underneath them.

He had seen more than a few mundane couples- usually drunk- having a _good _time like this in dark alleys but he couldn't place the screams.

The male tickled the woman under her chin before swiftly slicing his fingernails near her throat. It was a small gash, but large enough for blood to come trickling out.

The woman howled. The sharp incisors slid out of the male's teeth, his skin turning milky and translucent. He turned his head toward Gabriel.

"Do you mind? I'm trying to enjoy myself here," He drawled before fixating his gaze back on the woman.

Gabriel scowled at him. He advanced slowly and purposefully until he was almost breathing down the bloodsucker's neck.

He knew he was playing with the Law and perhaps the almost nonexistent fact that he was risking his life.

"I'm sure you know that the Accords forbid preying on mundanes who have done no wrong. You do know the consequences, am I right?" He casually touched the point of his seraph blade to the vampire's forehead.

The Night's child laughed, tilting his head back. The woman was glassy eyed, her skin turning into a pale milky sheen.

He snapped his incisors. "Go ahead foolish child, kill me. Let the rest of De Quincey's clan have the right to take revenge on the Clave. We have done nothing wrong."

Gabriel inclined his gaze towards the woman's. He could be doing any number of things right now, most preferably talking to Cecily.

He wasn't prepared to waste the entire night having a political debate with a vampire. "What about her then? You know the Law about mundanes."

The vampire released his grip on the woman and turned to face him as she slumped to the floor. He turned to face him, his curly hair, thin eyebrows and the slight tilt of his mouth ringing in Gabriel's memory.

"You…" He hissed, gripping his seraph blade tighter in his hands.

"_Finalmente, mi amigo," _Raphael said disinterestedly. "You are slower than last time. It took you this long to figure out who I was."

His words were slurred and somehow that added to Gabriel's sense of growing unease. He was toying with him, Gabriel realized.

"What are you doing here then? I thought you were in New York?" Gabriel fought to keep his voice steady.

"Patience, little one. Good things come to those who wait." He raised his gaze. "As for the mundane, I am merely collecting a debt."

"The London clan's?"

"Of course not, although I'm sure they will be collecting theirs very soon." He smiled without humor at Gabriel.

Raphael was a great deal shorter than Gabriel, but that was an air about him that was menacing and calculating.

"Who then?" Gabriel asked, already dreading his answer.

Raphael eyes were stone cold, lit with a hint of cruel amusement.

"Why, your father, of course."


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, so I had a question in the last chapter, about Raphael's existence. I know what he told Simon in the City of Lost Souls. Let's just say he lied to him.**

**After all, he is a cunning dude. **

Cecily could hear the murmurs and hushed voices of the dead. They were starting to grow restless, their moans and cries not unlike a resounding slap to the head.

In the glow of her seraph blade, Cecily saw the shadows dancing, spinning and twirling in dizzying circles. Earthen dust swirled around their shifting and changing bodies.

It was like she had passed into the void, the chain tethering her to this life, gone. From dust we were made, to dust we shall return.

She fingered her seraph blade lightly. She tensed when she heard the scuffle of footsteps. She peered tentatively around the bend.

Gabriel was leaning against the stone wall, his sandy hair tousled. Cecily - more than once- refused the urge to reach out and smooth them out.

Her vision focused and she noticed with a start that there was another man standing opposite him and a slumped figure on his shoulders.

Cecily felt a scream building up her throat. She clamped her free hand over her mouth and shut her eyes. Her legs were shaking and she slid slowly to the ground.

She remembered the man. Not personally, but by his actions.

The cold calculating smile, the blood red lips and the way he looked like he could tear your throat in seconds.

She remembered Ella, how she had pulled her aside after she and Will had disappeared for an hour and told her about the shadow world.

She hadn't believed her at first, but that night, she saw her father staggering into the house, his clothes stained with blood.

She saw the pale man standing on the porch, sheltered by the shadows. He had opened his mouth, showing his pale white teeth and his two unnaturally sharp front incisors to her.

He had winked, as if telling her that they would cross paths soon and that it wouldn't be pleasant.

She had felt the world swaying beneath her feet as if it was pulled from under her. She felt her father's arms wrapped around her tightly as he held her steady.

She never felt so afraid and safe at the same time. There was no one to protect her now though.

The man's fangs had slid out too quickly; there two puncture marks on his cherry rimmed lower lip. Not that it mattered.

The same red colored liquid was pooling around them, seeping into the gaps of the concrete tiles.

Cecily removed her fist from her lips when she was sure the moment had past. She shoved her seraph blade into her boots.

One thing she was sure of, the vampire would probably know of her presence by now. They had excellent hearing and she wasn't particularly trying to be quiet anyway.

She wondered mutely if there was a word or something to say to turn her seraph blade off.

She didn't want to draw attention to herself; she had to appear quiet and vulnerable.

She wasn't sure why Gabriel was even talking to the bloodsucker or why he hadn't killed already. That and the look of extreme horror plastered on his face.

She just had to find out what happened. Blame on it on her bloodline.

She touched her boot lightly and sighed in relief when the angelic light dimmed and then went out.

"You might as well come out now, it does not bode well for foolish Nephilim to loiter the streets past their bedtime time." A deep voice spoke out. Cecily inhaled sharply, bracing herself.

She turned the corner.

**Review :X**


	6. Chapter 6

**It's been a month.**

**.**

The Night's child smiled at Cecily, his lips pulled back from his fangs. Fresh blood slid down his smooth porcelain skin, red droplets of horror splotching his otherwise perfect unblemished complexion.

He raked his fingernails on the grime coated wall. Gabriel glared at Cecily, trying hard not to flinch at the vampire's penetrating gaze fixated on his back.

"What do you think you are doing here?" Gabriel tried to keep his voice steady. With luck, he could scare her off and she would not have anything to do in this mixed up business again.

He saw the hard set of her jaw and the thinly disguised defiance in her eyes. Gabriel held contact and thankfully, she kept silent.

Raphael stared at the scene in amusement. "I do believe the boy asked you a question," Rapahel focused on the girl and the faint glow that seemed to envelope her whenever she stopped moving. Gabriel stiffened at his question.

"I was following him," Cecily said, her expression bland. Raphael spread his arms wide and smiled at her. "Well, now you can join us, I am sure." The metallic texture in his eyes glinted.

"No, she will not." Gabriel broke in, stepping in front of Cecily. "This is the Lightwood's business alone, I wish of no one else to be involved." Raphael clasped his hands in front of him.

"You may speak for your family, but what of the rest of the Clave and its members? You would agree that this involves all of _them," _Raphael spat out the last word, as if it would poison him.

At this point, the woman lying sprawled on the pavement- the one that Cecily had always kept her gaze on- stirred. Cecily took an involuntary step back, putting Gabriel between her and the vampire.

"Jaslyn," Raphael's tone was neutral. "How nice of you to join us." Raphael streatched his arm out just as the pale body rose to take it. The woman's eyes were glassy and the side of her dress was completely sheared off, exposing her bare legs.

"I'm afraid," Raphael said, tossing a glance at her. "that I would have make those uncooperative, cooperate. Am I not right?" He took a step forward.

"Everything that transpires between us tonight should not reach the eyes nor ears of those of the Clave. I'm sure they would not care for an exiled family."

He snapped his fingers and the woman shifted her undivided attention to her. Cecily was sure that if she chose to attack her, she would have a hard time staying alive.

Gabriel took a step closer to her, both his seraph blades sliding from their arm sheaths into his hands. "Stay behind me," he kept his gaze trained on the Downworlder.

Cecily didn't need any more encouragement. Raphael seemed to pin her in place with his cold glare. "Honestly," he said tiredly. "do we really have to come to this?"

She barely had time to react as the pointed tip of the flung dagger spun towards her.

_**Review my shipmates!**_


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